Professional Dissertations DMin
Date of Award
2011
Document Type
Project Report
Degree Name
Doctor of Ministry
College
Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary
Program
Doctor of Ministry DMin
First Advisor
Russell Burrill
Second Advisor
S. Joseph Kidder
Third Advisor
Larry Lichtenwalter
Abstract
Problem
The lack of a disciple-making plan and irregular leadership training for members in the South Flint Seventh-day Adventist Church resulted in undeveloped and ill-equipped members operating in a reactive and survival mode leading to frustration and leader “burn outs.”
Method
The Discipleship Master Plan was developed and implemented in the South Flint Seventh-day Adventist Church in Burton, Michigan, which consisted of two major formats: (1) Four Levels of Discipleship Training, and (2) a Discipleship Master Plan Infrastructure. The four levels of discipleship focus on the development of all members. This training took place primarily during Sabbath afternoons and worship service sermon series. The Discipleship Master Plan Infrastructure is designed for leaders and developing new leaders and lay ministers. It consists of (1) Leadership Team I, (2) Church Teams, (3) Home Bible Fellowship Groups, and (4) Leadership Team II.
Results
The Discipleship Master Plan survey revealed the spiritual growth of members more than doubled and in some areas tripled after the training. Members spent more time with God in prayer and reading the Bible, involved in small groups, engaged in soulwinning ministries, and received training and leadership mentoring. The Decadal Growth Rate was 90.28 percent for the seven years from 1998-2005.
Conclusions
The Discipleship Master Plan proved to be an effective training disciple-making model for the South Flint Seventh-day Adventist Church. This resource, when implemented, has the potential of helping churches become a strong disciple-making church.
Subject Area
Discipling (Christianity), Spiritual formation
Recommended Citation
Santos, Melvin S., "Discipleship Master Plan: A Disciple-Making Strategy for the South Flint Seventh-day Adventist Church" (2011). Professional Dissertations DMin. 117.
https://dx.doi.org/10.32597/dmin/117
https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/dmin/117
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
DOI
https://dx.doi.org/10.32597/dmin/117
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